Tooth decay is one of the most common dental health problems in the U.S. today. Many working and middle-class Americans find themselves with little or no access to dental care because of cost or lack of insurance, but access to dental care is even more of a challenge to the population of migrant and seasonal farmworkers because of the many unique barriers they face.

Healthy Smiles for a Lifetime (Sonrisas Saludables Para Toda La Vida)Healthy Smiles for a Lifetime is an oral health training curriculum for lay health workers. It focuses on preventing common dental problems such as tooth decay and gum disease and the barriers that keep farmworkers from being able to enjoy good dental health. The curriculum provides detailed lessons and activities for training lay health workers on dental health issues that can be shared with their communities. The training includes basic information on dental hygiene, tooth decay, gum disease, baby bottle tooth decay, dental injuries, and extractions. This training is intended for lay health workers and the length of training varies depending on the needs of the organization.

Training opportunities are available to interested organizations. For more information on the Healthy Smiles for a Lifetime training, please contact Alicia Gonzales by email at: gonzales@ncfh.org

(*This program was funded by the Migrant Health Program, Bureau of Primary Health Care (BPHC), Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.)